For many students, labs can present unique physical, sensory, or procedural challenges. A pre-lab survey offers instructors the opportunity to hear from students about their learning and wellbeing needs, address potential barriers before the term starts, and support all students to succeed and fully participate in the course.
To facilitate this, we have created a generic template pre-lab survey for instructors to adapt and use in their courses. We have indicated where to customize or add course-specific text with brackets. You are also welcome to modify the survey further to suit your needs.
Survey Template
The survey template is available in both Qualtrics and Word formats. The Qualtrics version can be imported directly, while the Word version can be edited and copied into other platforms.
How to Use the Template
Follow the instructions below to adapt and use the template in your course(s):
- Create a new Qualtrics project and upload the template in the Qualtrics Survey Format (.qsf file extension).
- Edit the introduction (e.g., course name, types of activities, etc.) and the rest of the survey to suit your needs.
- Publish the survey.
- Note: If you make any changes to your survey after publishing it, you'll need to publish it again for the changes to go into effect.
- Create a link to distribute the survey.
- We recommend sending the survey to students prior to the start of term to provide time for a pre-lab tour or meeting. You can do so using the communications tool in the Workday Teaching App. If students request a pre-lab tour or meeting, ensure you follow-up.
Tips & Recommendations
The following are tips and recommendations to help you design an effective survey and boost your response rate:
- Keep the survey short – aim for 5 or fewer questions. It shouldn’t take students more than 5-10 minutes to complete the survey.
- Ask only necessary questions. Do not ask students to disclose sensitive personal or medical information.
- Be mindful of timing – communicate with students early and ask them to complete the survey by a specific date. When selecting a date, ensure that students will have enough time to answer the survey and you will have enough time to review their responses.
- Explain clearly what you are asking for and why. In your communication to students, explain the purpose of the survey, how you will use the data, and who will have access to the responses. Make sure students know that the survey is optional, their responses will remain confidential, and the survey is not connected to their grade.
- Always test your survey. Review the questions, check the survey logic and flow, confirm the length of time it takes to complete the survey, and make sure it displays correctly on different devices.
Survey Benefits
There are numerous benefits to conducting a pre-lab survey, including:
- Being better informed about student accessibility needs and academic accommodations
- Being able to anticipate potential barriers and prepare in advance
- Demonstrating to students that you care about their learning and wellbeing
- Encouraging dialogue between instructors and students
- Reducing anxiety for students with accessibility needs
Support & Acknowledgements
If you need help with this template or with student surveys more broadly, please contact your departmental Science Education Specialist (SES). We also welcome you to reach out if you have any suggestions to improve the template.
We would like to gratefully acknowledge Anne Thomas (CHEM) and Jen Sibley (MBIM) who created and piloted the initial surveys that we adapted to develop this template. Thank you, Anne and Jen!